The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved €205 million in funding for Morocco to extend a high-speed railway in the country.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved €205 million in funding for Morocco to extend a high-speed railway in the country.
The funding will go towards the implementation of the Rail Infrastructure Development Support Project (PADIF).
The project aims to strengthen the capacity and operational performance of the Kenitra–Marrakech railway corridor, which carries a significant share of the country’s passenger and freight traffic.
In addition to extending the high-speed railway (HSR), work will involve upgrading the existing railway infrastructure along this strategic corridor and around the Casablanca rail hub.
Morocco, which will co-host the World Cup in 2030, was the first country in Africa to build a high-speed railway, with a line running between Tangier and Kenitra at up to 320kmh (198.8mph). The next phase of the line would involve an extension all the way to Marrakech, over around 200km (127.4 miles) at an expected cost of several billions of Euros.
PADIF also incorporates a project management support component covering project ownership, engineering supervision, and the monitoring and evaluation of results and impacts.
Achraf Tarsim, head of the African Development Bank Group’s country office in Morocco said, “By combining the extension of the high-speed rail line with the modernisation of existing infrastructure, this operation will help accommodate growing passenger and freight traffic, facilitate trade flows, and reduce travel times.
“In the long term, it will strengthen Morocco’s logistics competitiveness and reinforce its role as a strategic hub linking Europe and Africa.”
African Development Bank AfDB African Development Bank Group high-speed railway Rail Infrastructure Development Support Project railway infrastructure World Cup Achraf Tarsim Morocco Kenitra–Marrakech
